In This Issue
Arkansas Counties use CodeRED to keep citizens safe
22
County Clerks enjoy bill signing
43
SPRING 2013
Features Circuit Clerks hold continuing education meeting, ................................................47
County Judges conduct winter meeting in NLR ......................................................48 AAC members host legislative luncheon . ...............................................................50
Inside Look County & District Officials Directory order form .....................................................17
Retirement not in cards for Haywood ......................................................................38 TOP 10 Reasons to go — AAC Conference ..............................................................35 AAC Conference information and registration form ......................................36 - 37
Treasurers crunch numbers at seminar
44
Departments Calendar of Events .........................................................................................................6
Cover stories
Prairie County all about people pitching in to make it work ............ 28
A personal look - Mike Skarda ...............31
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the stained glass, pews and pipe organ to other churches across the country. They were also in the process of deeding the property to the Des Arc School District and the school was planning to eventually demolish the building and use the land for future growth. Prairie County and County Judge Mike Skarda had a vision to change the building’s fate and find a way to keep its unique architec- ture, history and interior magnificence as an intrinsic cornerstone of the Des Arc community.
T
After working with Presbyterian leaders, the property was deeded to Prairie County. It will soon receive a new roof and updated electrical work paid for by grants before it will be reborn as the county library.
A tale of two courthouses .. ...................................32
Cover Notes: Stained Glass at the First Presbyterian Church of Des Arc
his vibrant stained glass window is located inside First Presbyterian Church of Des Arc which dates back 100 years. The church building has been vacant for years and Presbyterian leaders were in the process of allocating
beautifulthings in the
seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart.
“ ” — Hellen Keller
From the Director’s Desk ..............................................................................................7 President’s Perspective ................................................................................................9 Attorney General Opinions .........................................................................................11 Frequently Asked Questions ......................................................................................12 From the Governor .......................................................................................................13 Research Corner ..........................................................................................................18 County Law Update ......................................................................................................14 Seems to Me .................................................................................................................20 AAC Staff profile ...........................................................................................................56 Advertiser Resource Index .........................................................................................58
(AAC Photo / Scott Perkins)
The best and most world cannot be
It is estimated that lightning strikes the United States 40 million times per year. However, lightning causes only about 15 recorded deaths each year.
In 2011 calendar year, there were a total of 1,927 reported emer- gency management incidents in the state, according to the Arkansas Department of Emergency Management. Of those 1,927 incidents; 765 were hazardous material related; 150 were miscellaneous impact; 324 were natural disasters; and 688 were other incidents.
Arkansas Counties using CodeRED to keep citizens safe Communications evolving for emergencies, other information dissemination
By Ethan Nobles For County Lines
tant announcements. So far, 12 Arkansas counties, 11 cities and the Arkansas Electric Cooperatives have signed up for the CodeRED service. CodeRED is offered as two distinct products: CodeRED which provides geogra- phy based notification for clients (no weather component), and Co- deRED Weather Warning, which are the automated severe weather warnings. Some clients have just CodeRED, but several, especially in storm prone states, elect to use both for critical communications. So far, CodeRED’s customers in Arkansas have been happy with
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the product. “It’s been a very good investment,” said Saline County Judge Lanny Fite. Fite said Saline County officials first looked at CodeRED 10
years ago and weren’t overly impressed with what they saw. Last year, however, Fite said the county signed up for both the primary CodeRED product and the weather warning system at a cost of $32,000 a year. “Te technology 10 years ago wasn’t what it is today,” Fite said. “Of all the things we have done – sirens, weather radios – I believe this is the best thing.” Fite said the beauty of CodeRED is that it uses a polygonal map- ping system to dispatch warnings to people. Anyone who has seen a televised storm warning system should be familiar with that tech-
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or the past decade and a half, Florida-based Emergency Communications Network has developed its CodeRED warning network as a product that will both warn people of impending natural disasters and get them other impor-
nology. Te National Weather Service uses it to show the projected path of a storm and CodeRED monitors warnings generated by the services. Fite said weather warnings are generated by CodeRED and only
citizens with the polygon are warned. Fite said, for example, people living in Benton won’t be warned of a tornado that could hit people living in another part of Saline County. Tat system is distinctly different from the federal information
processing standard (FIPS) codes used to activate tornado sirens. Un- der that system, all citizens in the county are warned if there is a storm regardless of whether they are in the path of it or not. In other words, the county can’t be selective of which tornado sirens to activate – if one sounds, they all sound and that means those warnings may or may not be relevant. Also, Fite said a system of tornado sirens is ex- pensive to put in place and maintain. Tose FIPS codes are also a problem for weather radios. Fite said
Saline County has purchased 10,000 of those during the past decade – at a cost of $22 to $27 per unit – to give to people that may not live near a tornado siren. Fite said he’s learned that people were shutting off those radios be- cause they were tired of getting warnings frequently during certain times of the year such as the spring when tornados tend to form in the Natural State. Fite said CodeRED has the potential to replace tornado sirens completely within the next decade. He said county residents can choose to receive phone calls on landlines or cell phones when they are in the path of a storm. He pointed out that people can also opt to receive text messages if they choose. Fite said the fact CodeRED can
COUNTY LINES, SPRING 2013
AAC F A M I L Y & F R I E N D S » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » Arkansas County Clerks enjoy bill signing
Representative Mary Lou Slinkard (from left), Jeff Sikes, Gov. Mike Beebe, Clark County Clerk Rhonda Cole and Boone County Clerk Crystal Graddy pose for a photo after the Governor signed HB1984 into law in April. HB1984 will allow county clerks to use electronic polling books and have ac- cess to an electronic voter registration list.
County judges testify for CJAA sponsored annexation bills
Above: Representative Bruce Cozart (District 24) joins Crawford County Judge John Hall to testify for SB530 and 531 (now acts 1071 and 1072 of 2013) in the Senate City, County and Local Committee. Act 1071 directs municipalities to annex lands that are contiguous and “in a manner that does not create enclaves.” Enclaves are holes of unincorporated areas within a city. Left: Garland County Judge Rick Davis also testifies for SB 530 and 531. Act 1072 disallows strip annexation.
COUNTY LINES, SPRING 2013 43
AAC F R I E N D S & F A M I L Y » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » » »
Roger Haney, Washington County Treasurer, updates the Arkansas County
Treasurer’s Association, on the 89th Arkansas General Assembly, the legislative process and particular bills sponsored by the AAC and the treasurers. The association held a continu- ing education conference in late February at the AAC in Little Rock.
Treasurers crunch numbers at seminar
David Coles, Information Sys- tems auditor with Legislative Audit, updates treasur- ers on his offices procedures and protocols.
Above: Keith Petit with Legislative Audit presents information on 833 funds and the annual financial report. Phillips County Treasurer Becky Gattas participates in the question and answer portion of the presentation. Right: Arkansas County Treasurer Charles Horton looks on.
44 COUNTY LINES, SPRING 2013
STORY
COVER
Prairie County banks on its people to get job done
P
rairie County was the destination for the County Lines cover story for this spring 2013 edition. We tracked down Mike Skarda, Prairie County Judge, and spent a
couple days touring his agriculture-based county and talking about the impact of the flood of 2011 that ravaged the area. We learned that Prairie County has faced tough times in recent years with a declining population and economy. However, through that adversity, we also learned how the good people in county government and the hard- working constituency always ban together to get done whatever needs to be accomplished.
Skarda cares about the people of his county, and is proud of them. He faces challenging public ser- vice waters that many rural counties must navigate as well. His current passionate project is saving the First Presbyterian Church of Des Arc build- ing and converting it to the new county library. County Lines also took the opportunity to visit with other county officials including Sandra Patterson, county OEM director and the state OEM director. The rest of this story is only a turn of the page away.
Mike Skarda Prairie County Judge
COUNTY LINES, SPRING 2013
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